Abdominal Slimming Solutions

With a board certified plastic you don’t have to have ripped abdominal muscles to have a tight toned abdomen.

Abdominal Slimming Solutions Overview - 1101

The Skinny


Excess fat, loose skin, excess skin, and abdominal protrusion can cause some significant aesthetic concerns in the abdominal wall area (check out our complete guide to Abdominal Contour Concerns). These issues can be caused by weight gain, weight loss, natural aging leading to loose skin, pregnancy, and weightlifting. Fortunately, a board certified plastic surgeon can utilize a non-surgical or surgical body contouring procedure targeted to the abdominal wall to create your ideal aesthetic.

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The Specifics


Who may consider abdominal slimming procedures?

Let’s briefly review the abdominal wall to better understand how things go wrong and how you can fix it. The abdominal wall has two major fascia layers (subcutaneous tissue) called Scarpa’s fascia and Camper’s fascia. The muscles of the abdomen are also wrapped in fascia. The major muscle groups are the rectus abdominis (six pack), internal and external obliques, and the serratus anterior up near the underarms.

The Anatomy of the Abdominal Wall abdominal-wall-anatomy-cross-section-illustration

Men are more prone to storing fat in the abdominal area, while women are more likely to store excess fat in the thighs. As we age, the distribution of fat deposits in the body changes, and fat will naturally accumulate in the midsection. Skin will also become sagging and droopy. Pregnant women, and obese older males especially are susceptible to diastisis recti.

  • Belly Fat: Correlated to high levels of body weight and body fat. When it comes to muscle use it or lose it, and when it comes to calories use it or store it, so eat right and exercise.
  • Diastasis Recti: Seperation of the right and left sides of the rectus abdominis at the connective tissue.
  • Skin Laxity: Skin laxity can occur naturally with the joys of aging as collagen and elastin break down, or it can occur in individuals who have experienced extreme weight loss.

What can you expect from abdominal slimming procedures?

Abdominal slimming procedures can alter, rejuvenate, and enhance the soft tissues of the abdominal wall. There are both surgical and nonsurgical options depending on your underlying concern.

  • Tummy Tuck: Get rid of the excess and tuck the rest into an aesthetically pleasing contour. Win, win!
  • Liposuction: A 'fat vacuum' (so to speak) that permanently removes fat cells.
  • Diastasis Recti Repair: A procedure to sew your abdomen back together after pregnancy or weight loss.
  • Non-Surgical Fat Reduction: Freeze, heat, inject! These non-surgical techniques can still slim without any sharp objects.

Both surgical and non-surgical procedures to the abdominal wall will be effective and produce significant results. It is important to keep in mind, all of these procedures will be subject to changes in weight, aging, and future pregnancies. Additionally, many of the surgical procedures require patients to wear a compression garment during the recovery period.

When should you consider an abdominal slimming procedure?

If you’re looking to repair your separating abdominal wall in the case of diastasis recti, the ideal time to fix it is probably now. If, on the other hand, your concern is cosmetic, then the best time to pursue a procedure is when you are in generally good health, have realistic expectations, and can commit to the recovery period. Also, consider if you're at a stable weight, and, for women, the possibility of future pregnancies.

Why should you consider an abdominal slimming procedure?

Why repair, enhance, refine, and define your abdominal wall? Here are a few reasons: to repair your damaged abdominal wall, to lose the fat without the effort, or to create your ideal abdominal contour.

Surgical Procedures for Abdominal Slimming

Depending on the cause of your abdiminal concerns, surgeries like tummy tuck and liposuction (or some combination of the two) can provide a slim, taught mid-section.

Tummy Tuck

A classic procedure to tone and tighten the abdomen.

Diastasis Recti Repair

How to correct a divergence of your abdominal wall due to pregnancy, poor weightlifting techniques, or obesity.

The Anatomy of Diastasis Recti Abdominal Wall Anatomy Illustration

Liposuction for Abdominal Slimming

There are an array of liposuction techniques that can permanently remove fat cells from the mid-section.

The Anatomy of Belly Fat Belly Fat Anatomy Illustration

Non-Surgical Fat Reduction for Abdominal Slimming

If surgery is not for you, maybe it's time to emply cold, heat, or light to blast away unwanted fat.

The Takeaway


The abdominal skin, abdominal muscles, and abdominal fat tissue can be a trouble spot for many. Whether you're frustrated by excess fat, loose skin, or abdominal wall protrusion, a plastic surgeon can utilize one of numerous non-surgical and surgical procedures to define, refine, and enhance your abdomen and body contouring.

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Source List

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AEDIT uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

  1. Mayo Clinic Tummy Tuck mayoclinic.org
  2. American Society of Plastic Surgeons Tummy Tuck plasticsurgery.org
  3. American Society of Plastic Surgeons 2018 Plastic Surgery Statistics Report plasticsurgery.org; 2019-01-01
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